TIPS FOR GROWING: Edition 9- Brain Breaks
03.19.2023
TOPIC: Brain Breaks
Easy To Use Strategies for Providing Sensory Motor Breaks For School Age Students
Welcome to the Ninth Edition of Tips For Growing! These blog posts will focus on important clinical topics that are regularly encountered when working with children.
Today’s "Tips For Growing" will focus on easy to use strategies for providing sensory motor breaks for school age students.
We hope these seeds of information will help with the most important job there is . . . helping children grow.
It seems that each school year the academic expectations for students and teachers increases, while the students’ access to physical education and outdoor free play decreases.
What has not changed is the need for students to MOVE!
Children are not capable for sitting still for prolonged periods. To compel them to do so can have a deleterious impact on their mood, concentration, creativity, learning, and physical wellbeing.
To help ease this problem, teachers can offer their students brain and movement breaks.
What are Brain Breaks?
A brain break is a brief time period when the predictable routine is altered to allow for a novel, refreshing activity. These breaks are a planned classroom activity shift that can facilitate an optimal mood, attention, and emotional state for learning. These shifts from traditional classroom teaching are intended to help students rebound to a calmer, attentive state. In addition to offering movement breaks that are not formally aligned with the day’s curriculum, teachers can skillfully integrate movement into their prepared academic lessons. When teachers intentionally embed and align movement routines with the curriculum, they can improve their students’ recall of the academic lesson.
Rationale & Why It Works:
Brain and movement breaks are known to activate different parts of the brain and offer positive benefits. Embedding movement breaks into learning can help students retain information in a meaningful way. Studies have found that physical activity in the classroom can positively impact educational outcomes such as attention to task, motivation, and enjoyment of learning.
In a National Institutes of Health study published in the Journal Cell in June 2021, it was found that during short breaks from learning the brain was not idle. The brain was replaying the practice session at a high rate of speed and moving the material from the sensory and motor centers to the memory centers. This study ascertained that stepping away from the activity is not really stepping away at all.
According to the research, when learning a new skill, it needs to be connected to previous memories in a process called “binding.” The team discovered that after learning new information, our brains use cognitive downtime to process, organize, and integrate learned information. Given this, it is important not to underestimate the value of breaks when learning. According to the study, incorporating breaks into learning provides the period when the brain compresses and consolidates memories of what was practiced.
Different Types of Breaks:
Teachers may select and guide students through different types of activities based upon the students’ needs at that given time.
Some breaks are designed for calming down and resetting. These activities include mindful breathing, visualization, stretching, and other relaxation techniques.
Other breaks are designed for energizing through physical movement. These activities may include moderate to vigorous movements that may increase the heart rate and/or challenge the students’ balance. They may also include sequenced movements that promote body awareness and provide a variety of sensory input.
Tools To Grow has organized Brain Breaks into the following categories for ease and appropriateness of use.
These are:
(1) MOVEMENT Brain Breaks- Designed for use when it appears that your students need to be energized and brought to a new arousal level
(2) MINDFUL Brain Breaks- Designed for use when your students appear over aroused and need to reset, calm and focus
(3) LEARNING & Movement Breaks- These are aligned with the classroom curriculum and are used for adding movement while reinforcing academic concepts
How To Do It:
This blog will offer resources with a broad variety of movement and brain break activities that are designed to be easily integrated into the classroom setting. Most require no extra space, little preparation, and no extra equipment. In other words, they are highly affordable and easy to use!
Here are some considerations for implementation.
Include Everyone:
Be sure to consider the physical and cognitive limitations for ALL your students when using these activities. Be mindful of individual students uneasiness about trying certain movements.
This may be due to their physical limitations or emotional preparedness. The active movement breaks are designed to be fun. The brain breaks and quiet time activities are to give children a chance to calm and collect themselves. None of the activities should create worry or insecurity.
Encourage the students to do what they can, for as long as they can. For example, all students should be encouraged to complete as many repetitions as possible or participate for a certain duration without feeling penalized. If it appears that the task is too complex for some students, present an alternate but similar version.
Timing & Appropriate Selection:
Select appropriate activities, for brief intervals, at key times during the day. Brain breaks should occur before restlessness, fatigue, distraction, and boredom are widely observed. Think about how much time you have available to complete the break. Breaks for even 3 minutes can be beneficial.
Use the Mindful Brain Breaks when the students appear over-aroused and need to settle down for optimal brain performance. These breaks include stretching, deep pressure, focused breathing, and visualizations.
Use the Movement Brain Breaks when students appear lethargic and inattentive. These include moderate to vigorous movement. Based upon their students’ responses at various times of the day, there may be some trial and error as the teacher determines the ideal times and approaches for use.
Space:
Although each classroom has a unique size and furniture arrangement, the majority of these brain breaks require no extra space or additional equipment. Most are performed standing next to the student’s desk. When required, with some thought a teacher can also integrate breaks that require modest movement of the students and furniture.
Summary:
To summarize, school-based therapists can do their part to promote the use of movement and brain breaks into the classroom routine by sharing information and activities.
Tools to Grow has done the work for you!
Tools To Grow has many easy-to-use resources that will save money and time while integrating brain breaks and movement into the classroom.
These can be done almost anywhere and at any time deemed appropriate.
(1) MOVEMENT BRAIN BREAKS
-To Energize-
Designed for use when it appears that your students need to be energized & brought to a new arousal level.
MOVEMENT Brain Break Resources Include:
(1.) Task List: Designed for use when it appears that your students need to be energized and brought to a new arousal level. Includes 5 pages and 25 different activities!
(2.) Trading Places- Movement Breaks: Read the “Trading Places” statements out loud. Students will then follow the directions to trade places with another student.
(3.) Roll a Movement Brain Break: Roll a die for each column. Complete the movement brain breaks that match the numbers rolled. Includes 2 Versions and a total of 5 different activities!
(4.) Movement Brain Break Posters: Includes 9 high quality color posters.
(5.) Movement Brain Break Cards: Includes 20 high quality color cards.
(6.) Digital Google Slide: Animated Movement Brain Breaks: Open PDF and click links to make a copy of the Google Slides. Student views the animated movement and completes that brain break. Includes 21 different animated movement brain breaks!
(7.) What Do You Like More? Click & Move!: Download and open PDF in Adobe. Select a category from the “Main Menu”. Click on that square/image to select that category. Each category brings you to a “What do you Like More” question page. Click your answer to go to that Movement Break.
(8.) I Spy & Move! Movement Breaks: Digital + Print Versions! Look around the room. Find a color! Next use the chart to complete the movement break. Use the accompanying movement break posters to provide a larger view of the movement break.
(9.) Spin & Animal Walk: Roll a die and complete the corresponding animal action. Find Animal Walk resources here!
(10.) Sensory Motor Path: Arrange posters to create a sensory motor path. Student is to complete each poster along the way!
(11.) Boom Cards: Animated Movement Brain Breaks: Click on the Image to “DO” the desired Brain Break. Includes 21 different brain breaks. Each brain break is animated and moves! Find Boom Card here!
>>Find all MOVEMENT BRAIN BREAKS Here!
(2) MINDFUL BRAIN BREAKS
-To Calm and Focus-
Designed for use when your students appear over aroused and need to reset, calm and focus.
MINDFUL Brain Break Resources Include:
(1.) Task List: Designed for use when your students appear over aroused and need to reset, calm and focus. Includes 5 pages and 23 different activities!
(2.) Imagine & Visualize Activity: Designed for use when your students appear over aroused and need to reset, calm and focus.
(3.) Roll a Mindful Brain Break: Roll a die for each column. Complete the mindful brain breaks that match the numbers rolled. Includes 2 Versions and a total of 5 different activities!
(4.) Mindful Brain Break Posters: Includes 12 high quality color posters.
(5.) Mindful Brain Break Cards: Includes 24 high quality color cards.
(6.) Mindful Desk Strips: Explicitly teach each strategy prior to placing desk strip on child’s desk/table. Tape desk strip on child’s desk/table to allow for a visual of brain breaks. Includes 3 different versions.
(7.) Yoga: Yoga is a practice of physical exercises or body postures that build strength, flexibility, and confidence. Yoga is also about controlled deep breathing which helps calm and refresh the body and mind. Find Yoga resources here!
>>Find all MINDFUL BRAIN BREAKS Here!
(3) LEARNING & MOVEMENT BRAIN BREAKS
-Adding Movement While Reinforcing Academic Concepts-
These are aligned with the classroom curriculum and are used for adding movement while reinforcing academic concepts.
LEARNING Brain Break Resources Include:
(1.) Task List: Aligned with classroom curriculum and are used for adding movement while reinforcing academic/ learning concepts. Includes 4 pages and 17 different activities!
(2.) Move and Spell! A-Z Body Pose Posters: Print out each poster. Laminate for durability. Copy the body position to form that letter. Try to spell a word by sequencing a series of letter poses! Color and Black/White Versions Included!
(3.) Move and Spell! A-Z Body Pose Cards: 4 per page. Print out each card. Laminate for durability. Copy the body position to form that letter. Try to spell a word by sequencing a series of letter poses!
(4.) Roll, Move & Spell Board Game: Includes 5 different versions + EDITABLE version. First student rolls the die and moves the corresponding number of spaces. If they land on a word pose, they will move their body into each letter of that word. If they land on a word, depending on the level of the student, they will either read that word, identify the letters, say that word in a sentence.
(5.) Roll, Read & Move Board Game: Includes 5 different versions + EDITABLE version. First student rolls the die and moves the corresponding number of spaces. If they land on a movement, they will move their body and complete that brain break the number of times on the die. If they land on a word, depending on the level of the student, they will either read that word, identify the letters, or say that word in a sentence.
>>Find all LEARNING MOVEMENT BRAIN BREAKS Here!
We hope these seeds of information will help with the most important job there is . . . helping children grow!
References:
(1.) Watson A, Timperio A, Brown H, Best K, Hesketh KD. Effect of classroom-based physical activity interventions on academic and physical activity outcomes: A systema-tic review and meta-analysis. Int J BehavNutr Phys Act. 2017;14(1):114.
(2.) Martin R, Murtagh EM. Effect of active lessons on physical activity, academic, and health outcomes: A systematic review. Res Q Exerc Sport. 2017;88(2):149-68.
(3.) World Health Organization. (2021). Promoting physical activity through schools: a toolkit. World Health Organization. https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/350836. License: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO
(4.) Integrate Classroom Physical Activity in Schools: A Guide for Putting Strategies Into Practice . Centers for Disease Control November 2018. Springboard to Active Schools
website: www.schoolspringboard. org/classroomphysicalactivity
website: www.cdc.gov/healthyschools
(5.) Hillman C, Logan N, Shigeta T. A Review of Acute Physical Activity Effects on Brain and Cognition in Children. American College of Sports Medicine; Volume 4 • Number 17 • September 1, 2019.
(6.) Cohen, L. National Institutes of Health, The Journal Cell, June 2021. Taking short breaks may help our brains learn new skills.
https://www.ninds.nih.gov/news-events/press-releases/study-shows-how-taking-short-breaks-may-help-our-brains-learn-new-skills
Related Topics: Exercises/Strengthening, Gross Motor, School Based OT, Sensory Processing/Self-Regulation, Tips for Growing
